Filing cabinet



Oct. 26, 1948. R. E. WELLS 2,452,512

FILING CABINET Original Filed Oct. 19, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 OOQOOQQODOQOOIQOQO B01918. Wells,

R. E. WELLS FILING CABINET Oct. 26, 1948.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2 6 ns eons Original Filed Oct. 19, 1944 II I, III I! 1/ I 1 11 INVENTOR. m Ewan, M MM y, M M4 Patented Oct. 26, 1948 Metal Construction Company,

Jamestown,

N. Y., a corporation of Massachusetts Original application October 19, 1944, Serial No. 559,349. Divided and this application April 21, 1945, Serial No. 589,534

1 Claim. (01. 45-414) This invention relates to a novel and improved cabinet for the filing of records on drawer panels when Withdrawn from the cabinet. The invention aims to improve upon cabinets of this class in respect to preventing unauthorized access to the file by locking the panels in place. This application is a division of my pending application Serial Number 559,349, filed October 19, 1944, which has matured into Patent No. 2,410,255 on October 29, 1946.

The invention will best be understood by reference to the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings of one specific embodiment thereof, while its scope will be pointed out more particularly in the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a filing cabinet embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a portion of the cabinet with one panel withdrawn from the hous- Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view on line 3-5 of Fig.- 1 illustrating the panel locking means;

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the same on line i-4; and

Fig. 5 is a horizontal sectional view on line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawings and to the embodiment of the invention illustrated therein as an example, and having reference at first more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, there isshown a filing cabinet comprising a housing 6 having at its front an opening 8 at which the fronts of drawer panels it having handles l2 are presented to View.

The support for the panel, when within the housing, is two separate and distinct and independently movable slides l4 (see Fig. 4) each having an upper flange l6 and a lower flange IS with a channel 29 between them. These channels receive trunnions 22 which rest upon the lower flanges i8 and travel horizontally within the channels 257 and strike abutments 23 and 24 which close the front and rear ends, respectively, of each channel. Thus, when the slides are projected from the front of the cabinet (see Fig. 2) the trunnions 22 turn in the channels 20 of the projectin ends of the slides It which have been projected by the striking of the trunnions against the abutments 23 at the outer ends of the channels 26. When, however, the panel is thrust back into the housing, the trunnions 22 strike the abutments 2 3 at the inner ends of the channels 2t and move the slides rearwardly. When the panel is within the housing, it is supported by the lower flanges l8 of the slides M by reason of the fact that the lateral margins of the panels rest upon said flanges.

The panel supporting slides [4 are supported and guided by fixed guides 26 (see Fig, 4) each having a narrow upper flange 28 and a relatively wider lower flange 30 and between them a channel 32 in which a panel supportin slide I 4 travels. The travel is that required to project the slides the proper distance from the front of the cabinet as seen in Fig. 2, for example.

It is desirable that arrangements be made to prevent unauthorized access to the file, and to that end the cabinet is equipped with means new to be described for locking the panels in place. This is accomplished in a simple and convenient manner by the use of a common locking bar 34 which can be housed above the ceiling plate 36 (see Figs. 3, 4 and 5) within a channel bar guide 38 affixed to the top of said plate and having at its rear end a stop 40 to limit rearward movement of the locking bar. The locking bar (see Fig. 5) extends through an opening 42 in the front wall of the housing, and its forward movement through this opening is limited as by providing the rear end of the bar with lugs 44 which strike the inner face of said front wall and provide also a fulcrum about which said bar may then be rocked downwardly (see Fig. 3) into the broken line approximately vertical position there shown.

The locking bar is like a hasp and has a slot 46 (see Fig. 5) which will receive a lug 48 (see Fig. 3) provided with an opening 50 to receive a small padlock, which when locked prevents unauthorized access to the records. Thus, the one locking bar locks all the panels, but when housed, as in Fig. 3, is entirely out of the way. The convenience of this arrangement will readily be appreciated.

Having thus described one embodiment of the invention, what I claim is:

In a filin cabinet, the combination of a housing having a front wall presenting a marginal flat face provided with a large opening and a small opening, a drawer normally housed within said housing and arranged to be projected through said large opening, a lug projecting from said flat face opposite said small opening, a drawer-locking bar normally disposed across said flat face and across said large opening, said bar being provided at one end with a slot which normally receives said lug, said bar extending through said small opening to the interior of said housing and being provided within said housing with laterally projecting lugs to contact the inner face of said wall and to provide a fulcrum about which said bar may be rocked to a, position in which it will slide through said small openin into a, position away from said large opening, and a channel-bar guide having at its rear end a, stop to limit rearward 5 movement of said locking bar in said guide.

ROY E. WELLS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record-1n the w file of this patent:

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